Perception vs. Reality

We all know that Muslims in the UK feel persecuted. They tell us so, frequently. But The Telegraph looks at the evidence and comes to a different conclusion.

The arrest of Middle Eastern medics in connection with the car bombings raises questions about the profile of terrorist suspects and who should be stopped and questioned.

There is a powerful public perception that men of Asian, Middle Eastern or north African appearance, many of whom will be Muslims, are far more likely than white people to be stopped and questioned or searched by police under anti-terror legislation.

Many people in ethnic minority communities believe this amounts to an unofficial use of racial “profiling”, targeting Muslims. Police denials that they stereotype certain ethnic groups and the insistence of transport officials that airport security checks are random fall on deaf ears. The suspicions have only been strengthened by some comments by leading police figures.

The former Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Lord Stevens, declared that terrorism was a problem for the Muslim community and backed profiling. Ian Johnston, the head of British Transport Police, suggested that “we should not waste time searching old white ladies”.

Police chiefs believe that stopping pedestrians and vehicles under section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 (TACT), has a role to play in disrupting potential terror activity. This is virtually impossible to prove, however, and some senior officers fear the perception of discrimination is so corrosive it will deter many in the Muslim community from helping police.

The evidence is limited. Department for Transport sources suggest airport security checks are “random” but no data is available on who is stopped and questioned to prove or disprove this assertion. TACT stops are running at between 40,000 and 50,000 a year - a far lower level than “ordinary” criminal stop and search.

The legislation allows police in an area designated by chief officers as facing a terror threat to stop and search pedestrians or cars and their occupants without needing the reasonable grounds for suspicion of an offence which are necessary for an “ordinary” stop.

In the 12 months to last September, there were 22,672 section 44 stops in London, which resulted in only 27 terror arrests. But section 44 was not designed primarily to achieve arrests but to disrupt potential terror activity.

Are anti-terror stops used unfairly against Asian people? They are more likely to be stopped but a recent report by the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA), which rarely misses any evidence of discrimination by the force it governs, suggests the perception of significant unfairness is not supported by the statistics.